Italian officials said they had dismantled a Europe-wide network of forgers and dealers selling works purported to be by A-list artists, mostly through auction houses.

Italian police have uncovered a pan-European forgery ring responsible for producing and selling counterfeit artworks attributed to dozens artists including Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Salvador Dalí and Banksy.

Over 2,100 pieces of forged artwork were recovered, which were supposedly by Banksy, Salvador Dalí, Gustav Klimt, Joan Miró, Andy Warhol, and Pablo Picasso, and were potentially worth about €200m (£165m). Thirty eight people across Italy, Spain, and Belgium have been arrested over the forgeries and its illegal sale.

The investigation so far spans Italy, Spain, France and Belgium, with suspects under investigation for conspiracy to handle stolen goods, forgery and illegal sale of artworks. News of the investigation was jointly announced by the paramilitary Carabinieri art squad and the Pisa prosecutors’ office and first reported by Reuters.